[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 3]
[House]
[Page 3670]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  0910
                          REFORM ENTITLEMENTS

  (Mr. PITTENGER asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute.)
  Mr. PITTENGER. Madam Speaker, for too many years our leaders have 
irresponsibly put off the tough decisions necessary to place our 
country on sound financial footing. President Obama seems to not be 
focused on the problem, as he never even mentioned our nearly $17 
trillion debt during his inaugural address and State of the Union 
speech.
  Yet Peter Orszag, former Budget Director for President Obama, 
recently told a bipartisan group of freshman Representatives:

       Unless you deal with the debt, you're playing games with 
     our economic future. Unless you find savings with 
     entitlements, you're playing games with the debt. You better 
     go fix it.

  American taxpayers deserve and expect an accountable government, not 
a bloated bureaucracy in need of credit counseling. Each passing year 
makes the decision more difficult and the changes more painful. 
Medicare will be insolvent by 2024, which means we are rapidly 
squandering any chance to fix the problem.
  Our $17 trillion debt, which currently results in $220 billion in 
annual interest payments, is a drag on our economy, deterring our 
ability to create jobs for American families. Reforming entitlements 
must be done to help our economy grow today and provide for the future.
  Any plan to reform entitlements must preserve the current benefits 
promised to this generation while providing guaranteed options for 
future generations; however, we must be strong and take action. We must 
enact a responsible plan to preserve these important safety nets for 
future generations; for if we do nothing, we will watch as American 
families suffer even more after Medicare and Social Security collapse 
while our Nation faces economic collapse.

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